


The Road Ahead

by Buckwild



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Five has a life crisis and Vanya is supportive, Gen, Number Five | The Boy Has Issues, Post-Canon, Protective Vanya Hargreeves, mentioned Vanya/Sissy, that's it that's the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:47:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27363742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Buckwild/pseuds/Buckwild
Summary: Curled up on the passenger seat of Vanya’s car, Five presses his forehead against the window and wills his brain to just stop for a second. They’re not going to crash; he knows this, but still, he fidgets with the seatbelt like he’s testing it, and indulges in imagining disastrous scenarios.“Five,” Vanya says, yanking him out of his little spiral of misery, "is everything ok?"
Relationships: Number Five | The Boy & Vanya Hargreeves
Comments: 6
Kudos: 77





	The Road Ahead

He’s doing _better._ After everything that’s happened, Five no longer expects things to be good, but he can work with better. Daily life’s proven to be like an apocalypse meal: tough, unappealing, and honestly a little disheartening, but he’s too proud to waste it, so he fights against whatever’s haunting him, and sinks his teeth into what’s coming next. He’s going to enjoy it, whether he likes it or not. 

He has to admit, however, that this whole _family movie night_ thing is a bit too much.

Curled up on the passenger seat of Vanya’s car, Five presses his forehead against the window and wills his brain to just stop for a second. Vanya’s driving, and she’s a cautious driver; they’re not going to _crash;_ he knows this, but still, he fidgets with the seatbelt like he’s testing it, and indulges in imagining disastrous scenarios. 

“Five,” Vanya says, yanking him out of his little spiral of misery.

“What?”

“You seem tired.”

He pauses, trying to guess which part of his behaviour made her come to that conclusion.

“Didn’t get much sleep last night,” he replies sincerely, “nothing important. I promise I'm fine.”

“Are you sure about that? You look like shit, honestly.”

“That's because I've been keeping an eye on everything for tonight. If Luther was better at making sure our meetings are safe, I wouldn't have to worry this much.”

“We’re just having a movie night. No one's gonna get murdered.”

He gives her a sideways glance. It’s not like they have the best record when it comes to family reunions.

“Everyone’s going to be there,” he mutters regardless, like he’s making any sense.

“Yeah, that’s kind of the point.”

“It’s also a good chance for someone to-”

“Who?”

“I don’t know!” he says, a little more forceful than he intended, “but I’m right.” His voice softens then, and when he speaks again, it’s with sincere, brotherly concern: “there’s nothing wrong with being cautious, Vanya. I’m sure there’s a dozen people out there who want to kill you _in specific_ , and you’re not even the worst one of us.”

Vanya seems to consider this for a second. “You're not doing fine, Five,” she says, and turns her attention back to the road. 

There’s a hint of sadness in her eyes, but then, that’s _always_ there. Five doesn’t allow himself to wallow in the guilt he’s feeling right now.

“How’s Sissy, by the way?” he asks, his voice flat and awkward.

“Ah, good,” Vanya replies, unfazed by his stiffness, “she’s coming to the city next week, so she’s gonna be staying with me.”

“Good.”

“You should come for dinner on Thursday, if you're free.”

“That sounds good.”

“Good.”

  
 _We said good four times_ , Five thinks, and it’s a new feeling- Vanya, his favorite sibling, is now an adult he has no way of relating to, but since he still craves her affection, he’s feeling _self-conscious_. He shifts on his seat, clicks it open a couple times.

After some minutes of awkward silence, the car comes to a stop. Five turns to look at the building, expecting to see the entrance to Luther’s place, but instead he sees Vanya’s apartment. His sister doesn’t open the car door. For a moment, Five tenses up and prepares for a fight, even if it makes no sense. She turns towards him then, and there’s nothing but kindness in her eyes. It makes him feel terrible. They’ve promised not to do this to her anymore. 

“Hey, Five,” she says softly, her eyes on him.

Five avoids her gaze. 

“I’m-” he starts to say, but he can’t, can’t elaborate on what’s happening, “-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

“It's ok. I mean, it's not ok, but we can talk about that later," she says, because Vanya's assertive now, and isn't that quite something, "look, I'm not sure of what's going on, but I know you're not doing great. I can't force you to talk, but I want you to know that we’re here for you, alright?”

Five cringes. He can’t bring himself to explain just how out of place he feels here, in this world that’s gentle; how they being here for him just makes it all worse. There’s no place for him, but he can’t just say that. Five might be a feral thing, but he _loves_ Vanya. He wouldn’t ruin the night for her like that. 

“Look, Vanya. Even if something _was_ happening, it wouldn’t matter, alright?” 

Vanya’s expression is getting sadder by the second, but in there, something else grows. She’s trying to understand. Her hand comes to rest on top of his, and to his surprise, Five doesn’t want to move away from the touch.

“That’s ok. You can stay at my place, alright? I’ll tell everyone you weren’t feeling too good. I’m sure they’ll understand.”

He shifts on his seat. Outside, the sun is setting. The street is quiet, the skies are clear, and the sun is setting, just like it always has. _This is unremarkable_ , Five thinks, but something inside his chest clings to the idea. _Everything is fine, there’s nothing else to do_. For the first time in a long time, his agency has hit a roadblock he does not have to fight against. 

God, he wants to cry. 

“You know,” Five mumbles, clicking the seatbelt open, “that doesn’t sound too bad. I need sleep.”

Vanya smiles.

“Alright,” she says, and starts the car again, “I’ll leave you my keys, in case you wanna come join us later.”

“Thanks.”

The truth is that Five won’t be joining them, and they both know that. But at least he’ll be getting some sleep- at least he’ll be comfortable, even if it’s not ideal, not yet.

Small steps.

**Author's Note:**

> ngl the reason i never post my tua fanfiction is that every time im like, "wait why am I NOT focusing on this other character instead?" 
> 
> anyways believe me this left me wishing I had made it abt vanya instead. i dont know what patience is.
> 
> i hope you enjoyed it gnight babes


End file.
